graze for good energy

Grazing is a great way to ensure you have good energy all day long.

Most of our natural foods release their energy slowly so blood sugar (glucose) levels remain stable; no highs which can make you feel bloated and uncomfortable or lows which can make you feel tired or lethargic.

Check out the graph below to see why grazing is good at stabilising blood sugar when compared to eating a larger processed lunch of foods like white pasta or bread.

Apart from avoiding the daily highs and lows, keeping blood sugar stable has loads of benefits…

• stops us feeling hungry
• no sweet cravings (as shown by the pink zone in the graph)
• prevents the body storing excess sugar as fat
• reduces the risk of diabetes
• improves concentration and performance… to name but a few

Grazing and keeping blood sugar levels stable is the key to feeling good and staying energised all day long.

case study: the 3pm slump

The dreaded 3pm slump is caused by a rapid fall in blood sugar levels following a sugary peak after lunch.

If you eat refined foods, such as white bread, white pasta, cakes or biscuits, your blood sugar sky rockets causing the body to react by producing lots of insulin.

When the insulin has brought blood sugar levels back to normal, the body stops releasing it. But this isn't the end of the story — insulin that is already in the system keeps taking sugar out of the blood until our blood sugar levels plummet.

This is the cause of the mid afternoon sleepy feeling we know as the 3pm slump. The brain is low on sugar, and the knock-on effect is the craving of chocolate or crisps in the afternoon.

Grazing on natural foods helps maintain consistent blood sugar and healthy insulin levels in the body. Apart from helping you stay satisfied this can help prevent the onset of diabetes, and it's great for all-round health and wellbeing.

After all, not feeling the need to grab something naughty in the afternoon can only be a good thing.